Activision Blur Game Review

We haven’t covered too many non-Porsche specific things over the life of this blog, but every once in a while something comes along that I think is worth mentioning to fellow auto enthusiasts. Especially those interested in sports cars like Porsche. Despite the recent number of video game related things I’ve posted about, this is not a video game blog, however…

…sometimes the love of driving, sports cars and related video games are all things an enthusiast is interested in. I definitely fall into that camp. The fine folks at Activision were kind enough to send a copy of a new driving game to me for review. It’s called Blur and here’s what is promised:

Blur is the ultimate powered-up racing experience, dropping players into heart-pumping, electrified action with multiple cars trading paint as they charge towards the finish line.  Drivers careen through real-world track locations packed with fast curves, sneaky alternate routes and hair-raising jumps in over 50 licensed cars as they collect intense Power-ups, including the ability to blast other cars out of the way with huge bursts of energy, boost their speed, and more. Blur delivers a new style of Powered-up racing experience for all gamers.

I’m not usually a fan of non-track related racing games, but this has to be one of the most fun games I’ve picked up and just started playing. No real learning curve for instant play other than a quick understanding of the controls. Blur is a fast-paced, racing game with some fun twists.

When “we” (which really means my 14 year old son) cracked open the game for the first time, neither of us really knew what to expect. After he played it for several minutes without me (a mistake since he instantly had an advantage), I jumped in and we raced against each other along with several computer drivers.

The action is intense and there is a definite focus on driving technique, despite non-track-like layouts and a number of other enhancements such as power-ups and things to mess with the cars you’re racing against. My first thought was this felt like Mario Kart on steroids. I’ve played that quite a bit with the kids over the years, and this seemed like an adult oriented version. As a side note, you really need to jump over to the Blur site and check out the Brock Lee promo video with the Mario Kart intro. It’s hilarious.

The cars and available car options are pretty extensive in the game. Most of the high end super cars are represented with the ability to customize the color. Just as in real life racing, different cars have strengths and weaknesses that make them best suited for various races and tracks. Unfortunately, Porsche doesn’t seem to be represented.

I have to say, my son and I were both impressed with it and found it pretty addicting. It’s easy to just sit down and play with only some general control familiarity required. It’s also cool that Blur can be played with up to 4 people locally or as many as 20 people online. It’s not often that you come across a decent driving game that allows for multi-player locally, so that’s a nice bonus.

Overall, I’d highly recommend Blur. It’s a fun game that anyone who likes driving games will enjoy. My only complaint is the lack of Porsche as an available car to drive. Maybe in a future version or as a download.